This February we had a special day, 2-22-22, which certainly generated a lot of puns and pricing specials in my in-box. Before this month is totally over, I wanted to highlight some of the posts I have especially enjoyed recently; I think I will present them in pairs.
Finance, Illustrated
I don’t read graphic novels, but I love The Woke Salaryman, out of Singapore. This post neatly illustrates some of the basic tenets of (responsible) personal finance: The TWS Guide to Get Rich Quick.
As the market drops in early 2022, amid worries about rising inflation, they return with Help, the market is crashing (again). It’s not all rah-rah, buy-and-hold. They point out some of the troublesome behaviors that might give investors real cause for alarm. And also advise people not to panic sell.
Girl Wisdom
One Frugal Girl looks at the phrase “Money Isn’t Everything,” and turns it around and around. A nice thought piece about the stories we tell ourselves. I like her ultimate take.
She (One Frugal Girl) also wrote out 10 Steps to Become a Financial Minimalist, which came to me at the right time: right after I went through all of our (too many) accounts to review our yearly spending.
Marriage and Social Security
I enjoyed this short post from Humble Dollar about the advantages that Social Security offers a married couple: Wedding Gifts. I note that all the examples are of married couples where the big earner is older or the same as [his] spouse. Since the PiN household consists of an older low-earner and a younger breadwinner, I keep thinking I would love someday to see a post addressing the best Social Security strategy for such a couple.
I eventually did find such a post over at ESI Money. It comes after a review of a free seminar to review Social Security options (surprise! The seminar is really a sales pitch to use a financial planning firm), but half way through the post, I found some answers for the question of when to claim social security when the higher earner is younger. Thank you, ESI Money! (And his millionaire mentors).
Green Stuff
I know that we should eat our vegetables, and I even tell other people (my patients) all about the health benefits. Even so, I am totally tempted by sweets. This sort of tension–between what we know we should do and what we would love to do–is highlighted in this post from The Evidence Based Investor: Chocolate Cake Investor or Broccoli Investor–Which One are You?
This next post came at (almost) the right time. I had just spent a decent portion of a physical brainstorming with an adult about how to get more vegetables in their diet. Not long after–voila!–this article from A Dime Saved showed up in my browser: 19 Ways to Sneak Veggies into Every Meal. We’ve been using #1 at home this winter, and I have to say, it’s verrry tasty.
The Odd Couple
Name That Bias, published at Humble Dollar, is a great list of all the biases that can affect your financial life. If you are feeling a little guilty about stuffing your brain full of financial details, I would point out that almost all of them apply to medical decision-making as well.
For those interested in medicine, I have been saving this link for a few years. Senior Resident had a fun post on gustatory rhinitis and snatiation (sneezing after a meal), which are well-known in my parents’ household.
I hope you enjoyed the posts. Let me know if you had any favorites.